I finished all of the landscaping tasks I had planned for spring, which was a pretty exhaustive list, along with a number of other minor outdoor projects. Here was the full list of tasks I had planned:
- Climbing plants along wall
- Improve planters outside sitting room and library
- Replace cut down trees
- Plant something in former pond
- Improve planters on side of guest house
- Improve planter areas around front walk
- Improve planter areas near front door
- Power wash front of house
- Plant grass
- Reset eroded paver stones
- Replace bark
- Replace arbor vidas on edge of wall
- Vacuum and sweep garages
- Cut down tree in planter near the well
- Aerate grass and reseed yard
- Rip out everything in beds by library
- Use rope to reshape bush next to garage
- Remove old cable wires and dishes
- Spread fertilizer
- Remove all old landscape lights/boxes
As the weather warmed up, I finished the rest of the planting and continued to whip the lawn into shape.
One of the issues plaguing the lawn recently has been mole damage, and it had gotten out of control to the point that I had to do something about it this spring. By using a combination of poisoned mole bait and mole spikes, I’ve gotten it under control. Mole spikes are a pretty cool invention, they emit sound underground that drives moles away without killing them.
One of the last things I did in the yard was planting climbing plants, mostly Boston Ivy, along the base of the wall. My goal is to get them to grow on the wall and make the artificial parts of the wall look more natural. Boston Ivy grows very fast, 5-8 feet per year, so I think by the end of the summer of 2021 the sections of the wall should be properly covered if everything goes according to plan.
Overall, I’m really happy with how the yard turned out this spring, and it’s fun to see the fruits of my labor when I look out over the lawn from the porch.
